HADLEY, Mass. (WWLP) – An arrest warrant has been issued for the Hadley woman who released bees at sheriff deputies during a Longmeadow eviction back in 2022.
The Hampden County Sheriff’s Department states that on October 12th, 2022, at around 9:15 a.m., 55-year-old Rorie Susan Woods of Hadley pulled up to an ongoing eviction on Memory Lane in Longmeadow in a blue Nissan Xterra. Woods left her dog in the car and immediately went to the beehives being towed by her SUV, and tried to open the lids to unleash the bees.
A sheriff’s deputy tried to stop Woods, but she made the bees angry and they started to circle the area. Woods then smashed the lid and flipped a hive off the flatbed, which made the bees very aggressive. The bees stung several officers, some of whom are allergic, and bystanders who were watching nearby. One officer was taken to the hospital for bee stings.
Woods put on a professional beekeeper suit to protect herself, then carried a tower of bees near the front door of the home to try and stop the eviction, which has been stop-and-go for nearly two years. At the front door of the home, she tried to agitate the bees more and was arrested by Sheriff’s deputies and booked at the Western Massachusetts Reginal Women’s Correctional Facility.
Woods was set to report for trial on Tuesday at Springfield District Court, however, she failed to appear.
“The defendant failed to appear for her trial date, as she was ordered to do by the court. Consequently, a warrant has been issued for her arrest. While she remains innocent until proven guilty, the accusations against her are very serious, and we will be prepared to present the evidence that she endangered many employees of the Sheriff’s Department who were merely doing their jobs. She may have delayed justice, but it won’t be denied.”
Hampden District Attorney’s Office